Leppanen Family History

Finnish (Leppänen): from leppä ‘alder tree’ + the surname suffix -nen. Recorded as a hereditary surname (based on placenames containing the word leppä) in eastern Finland since the 17th century.

Adopted as an ornamental surname in the late 19th century in Satakunta, Tavastia, and central Finland primarily by Finns without surnames (compare Virtanen). In some cases also a habitational name from farms so named in western and central Finland since 19th century.

In the US, it has sometimes been translated into English as Alder.